There were two black magicians wearing hooded robes in a dark room lit by dim candlelight and four purple torches.
The torches surrounded, following the cardinal points, a bright blue magic circle drawn on the floor.
"All preparations have been made, my queen," said one of the magicians, turning to a woman who, seated on a throne, was watching them a little way off in the distance.
The woman had a scarf covering her face. Her hair was short, brown in color. She had at her side a woman with light blue hair, her servant.
"I hope you have not forgotten what I said. Mistakes will not be tolerated again." - Said the Queen, in a calm, yet threatening manner.
"N-Don't worry, Queen. We have redone all our studies and believe we will succeed this time." - replied the mage.
"That's fine. But don't forget that their lives are hanging by a thread." - stated the Queen.
"C-clear! I'll keep that in mind." - finished the mage, with a slight stutter and a certain panic in his voice. "We will begin the ritual of the Demon King's resurrection."
The two mages turned to the magic circle and began to chant a spell.
"Aenean non enim vel lectus facilisis semper ressuctio."
Immediately, lightning came down from the ceiling and hit the north torch. A second bolt of lightning came down and hit the left torch. Then another bolt of lightning hit the south torch. The right torch was the last to be struck by lightning. And then a big bolt of lightning, more powerful than the others, struck the center of the magic circle.
[Clap-clap], a clapping sound came from behind the magicians, directly from Queen Lilith.
"That was a beautiful light show." - Said the Queen.
The two mages immediately turned to her, and even under their robes and in the dim lighting, you could see the trembling and panicked looks on both their faces.
"My Queen, please have mercy. Give us a little more time and we will bring better results!" the mage begged. Before he could finish his plea, however, the man's body exploded in an instant, with nothing left but a pool of blood.
The other magician, terrified by the scene, took two slow steps backwards, trying to remain unnoticed and not be the target of cruel fate. The Queen pointed one of her fingers at the man who, in a panic, tried to run, but, immediately met the same end as his companion.
"Ahhhh..." - The servant girl said, in a voice of disappointment. "Look, how much wasted blood, my Queen."
"Eisheth, I am not in a good mood," replied the Queen.
The servant continued, "Queen, wouldn't it be better to give up? If we continue like this, we will have a deficit of black mages in our ranks.... Without the former king, we are suffering against the Manusya kingdom. After the humans managed to defeat him, we are suffering from almost daily attacks on our territory. Your Highness just needs to show the full extent of your power, my Queen. I bet when the humans see your power, they won't dare to come back anytime soon."
"Eisheth..." - before the Queen continues her sentence, however, a strong white light appears in the middle of the magic circle.
"The mages really did it!" exclaimed Eisheth.
"Eisheth, there is mana coming out of the magic circle! It must be an invasion from the Manusya kingdom!" - stated the Queen.
At this moment, Eisheth's nails turned into claws and his canine teeth increased in size, becoming extremely sharp. His light blue eyes turned red and his pupils became hunter's eyes, like those of a cat.
The bright light almost blinded me. I closed my eyes immediately, trying to avoid the discomfort. When I opened them again, I noticed that I was in a setting that I had seen many times before in anime and medieval games. I was in a room and standing on top of a magic circle. I had just been summoned to another world!
A loud scream from a beast broke my fascination with being summoned. I turned quickly toward the scream, but before I could even finish the movement, I was grabbed by the neck.
The hand was that of a woman with long blue hair, wearing a servant's uniform. Her strength was superhuman, able to lift me off the ground. I struggled desperately to free myself, but no matter how hard I tried, I could not.
My struggle for survival had totally exhausted my strength, and that hand was preventing me from breathing.
"I love it when my meals make that expression." - The woman said, with a sadistic look on her face.
With her fingernail, she began to make a cut on my face, starting under my left eye and stretching to my cheek.
"I've just arrived in this world and I'm already going to die.... I am really unlucky." - I thought.
I was close to losing consciousness due to lack of oxygen when I noticed a woman sitting on a throne, just watching us.
"I CAN BE USEFUL!" - I shouted with all my might, before passing out.
"Eisheth, release him and bring him here," said the Queen.
Immediately, the servant girl released my neck and I fell to the ground, without strength. I tried to breathe deeply and desperately, like a drowning man who had just been saved.
As I tried to catch my breath, I again felt the handmaid's hand on my head. Coldly, she began to drag me by the hair.
Still weak, I didn't have the strength to get up. I was dragged for about five meters - which seemed like kilometers. Not even ten minutes had passed since I arrived in this world, and I was already missing my old world.
"I brought him as you requested, my Queen," said the servant girl, positioning herself at the Queen's right side.
The Queen was still sitting on the throne, with her legs crossed and wearing a kind of veil over her face.
"You said you would be helpful. How will you do that? I'm curious," said the woman, in a sweet, soft voice, like a mermaid's song.
If it weren't for the pain in my body, I would have been hypnotized by that voice and missed the chance to save my life. But, ignoring the pain, I stayed on my knees on one leg and kept my head down.
"My Queen, it may not seem like it, but I am very strong. I can serve in the ranks of your army," I said.
The woman tilted her body and held my chin. Even with the veil covering her face, I could tell she was looking right into my eyes.
"I don't know how it is in your world, but here your strength is insufficient to be used," said the Queen, taking her hand from my chin and sliding her index finger down to my left breast, without diverting that penetrating gaze. I didn't even dare take my eyes off her.
"That's just a small fraction of my power," the Queen warned.
Immediately, I began to feel my heart being squeezed and beating faster. My blood started pouring out of my eyes, nose and mouth. The pain in my chest increased as my heartbeat accelerated.
My heart exploded like a grenade and then I died.
I came back to consciousness seconds later. And I was still on my knees in front of the Queen.
"What was that? Was it an illusion? It seemed very real." - I questioned in my thoughts.
"How long do you intend to make me wait? And I expect a satisfactory answer." - said the Queen.
That terrible scene was her magic. She wanted to show me my future if I displeased her. "What do I say?", I kept thinking, not knowing what I could do.
Suddenly, something came to mind. It was a complete cliché in anime, but it could be my salvation.
"My Queen, I don't understand the situation, but I believe they are at war with the humans, correct?"
"Go on, human." - Said the mighty one.
I was right! The animes were right!
"Since I am a human, I can infiltrate their kingdom and act as their spy."
The Queen put her hand to her face, under her veil, and began to laugh.
"Several humans have already made a deal with us, but you are the first one who intends to make an equal deal!" - The Queen said, before giving a slight sigh and continuing: "Okay, human. I like your boldness."
"My Queen, you are not thinking of..." - Interrupted Eisheth, who, before finishing his sentence, noticed the Queen's look of disapproval, immediately shutting up.
"Human, tell me what your name is?"
"My name is Lucas Atkins, my Queen."
"Hold out your hand, Lucas."
I obeyed her without hesitation. She took my hand and kissed it. I was somewhat confused by that attitude, but then I began to feel a small warmth in the same hand.
"Our agreement is sealed. You will be protected as long as you are serving us. Should you betray us or tell what happens here, know that you will meet a fate worse than death."
I stood and placed my hand on my left breast.
"I pledge allegiance to my Queen until the day I die."
This was ridiculous, but it was necessary to please her.
"Eisheth, put it on and send it to Manusya."
Eisheth came toward me and stood by my side.
"Please come with me," said the servant girl.
"Yes, ma'am," I replied.
When I looked at Eisheth, I noticed that her eyes were red and her nails were in the shape of claws. The woman started walking and, as I had been asked, I followed her like a condemned man going straight to the gallows, but there was no other option.